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Iscariot: A Novel of Judas
In Jesus, Judas believes he has found the One—a miracle-worker. The promised Messiah and future king of the Jews, destined to overthrow Roman rule. Galvanized, Judas joins the Nazarene’s followers, ready to enact the change he has waited for all his life.
But Judas’ vision of a nation free from Roman rule is crushed by the inexplicable actions of the Nazarene himself, who will not bow to social or religious convention—who seems in the end to even turn against his own people. At last, Judas must confront the fact that the master he loves is not the liberator he hoped for, but a man bent on a drastically different agenda.
Iscariot is the story of Judas—from his tumultuous childhood and tenuous entry into a career and family life as a devout Jew, to a man known to the world as the betrayer of Jesus. But even more, it is a singular and surprising view into the life of Jesus himself that forces us all to reexamine everything we thought we knew about the most famous—and infamous—religious icons in history.
But Judas’ vision of a nation free from Roman rule is crushed by the inexplicable actions of the Nazarene himself, who will not bow to social or religious convention—who seems in the end to even turn against his own people. At last, Judas must confront the fact that the master he loves is not the liberator he hoped for, but a man bent on a drastically different agenda.
Iscariot is the story of Judas—from his tumultuous childhood and tenuous entry into a career and family life as a devout Jew, to a man known to the world as the betrayer of Jesus. But even more, it is a singular and surprising view into the life of Jesus himself that forces us all to reexamine everything we thought we knew about the most famous—and infamous—religious icons in history.
367 pages, Paperback
First published February 5, 2013
177 people are currently reading
6015 people want to read
About the author
Tosca Lee
24 books3,369 followers"Superior storytelling."
-Publishers Weekly starred review
Tosca Lee is the New York Times bestselling author of The Line Between, Havah: The Story of Eve, The Progeny, The Legend of Sheba, Iscariot, The Long March Home (with New York Times bestselling author Marcus Brotherton) and others. Her work has been translated into seventeen languages and been optioned for TV and film.
She is the recipient of three International Book Awards, Killer Nashville's Silver Falchion, ECPA Book of the Year, and the Nebraska Book Award, and has finaled for numerous others including the Library of Virginia People's Choice Award, the High Plains Book Award, a second Silver Falchion, a second ECPA Book of the Year, and the Christy. The Line Between was a Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist for Best Mystery/Thriller of 2019.
You can find Tosca at ToscaLee.com, on social media, or hanging around the nearest snack table. To learn more, please visit ToscaLee.com
For book release news and giveaways, join Tosca Lee's Nocturnal Cafe.
-Publishers Weekly starred review
Tosca Lee is the New York Times bestselling author of The Line Between, Havah: The Story of Eve, The Progeny, The Legend of Sheba, Iscariot, The Long March Home (with New York Times bestselling author Marcus Brotherton) and others. Her work has been translated into seventeen languages and been optioned for TV and film.
She is the recipient of three International Book Awards, Killer Nashville's Silver Falchion, ECPA Book of the Year, and the Nebraska Book Award, and has finaled for numerous others including the Library of Virginia People's Choice Award, the High Plains Book Award, a second Silver Falchion, a second ECPA Book of the Year, and the Christy. The Line Between was a Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist for Best Mystery/Thriller of 2019.
You can find Tosca at ToscaLee.com, on social media, or hanging around the nearest snack table. To learn more, please visit ToscaLee.com
For book release news and giveaways, join Tosca Lee's Nocturnal Cafe.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 617 reviews
February 21, 2013
Tosca Lee is one of the best novelists writing today. The short version of any review of her work is "buy it now." A warning about Iscariot: it is challenging. You will see more of yourself in Judas than is comfortable. Lee's characters are well-drawn with complex motives, and careful attention is rewarded. She writes compactly, with every word doing its work.
It's a three-dimensional story, with depth and characters you care about. The thorough research in preparation for this novel is marvelously evident. I learned details about daily life and customs that lend rich nuance and context as familiar Scriptures are played out. To hear Jesus' teachings in light of the location and surrounding events was truly enlightening.
I thought often of Abraham and his well-intentioned action to help God fulfill His promise to give Abraham offspring. The resulting union with Hagar plaugues the world to this day, and will ignite the last battle. Awful, unforseen consequences resulting from a lack of trust.
To get personal, the book invited me to review decisions I've made, and shudder. The phrase, "lean not on your own understanding" kept ringing in my head. We think ourselves adequately informed, full of wisdom, insight, and good intentions. We think ourselves kings. We are mistaken. Sometimes gravely so.
It's a three-dimensional story, with depth and characters you care about. The thorough research in preparation for this novel is marvelously evident. I learned details about daily life and customs that lend rich nuance and context as familiar Scriptures are played out. To hear Jesus' teachings in light of the location and surrounding events was truly enlightening.
I thought often of Abraham and his well-intentioned action to help God fulfill His promise to give Abraham offspring. The resulting union with Hagar plaugues the world to this day, and will ignite the last battle. Awful, unforseen consequences resulting from a lack of trust.
To get personal, the book invited me to review decisions I've made, and shudder. The phrase, "lean not on your own understanding" kept ringing in my head. We think ourselves adequately informed, full of wisdom, insight, and good intentions. We think ourselves kings. We are mistaken. Sometimes gravely so.
September 7, 2020
I completed like one book last month and then finished this in less than a week. I couldn’t put it down! I don’t read a lot of Christian fiction. Perhaps I have an unfair bias against it? I’m always afraid it’s going to be saccharine with cheesy writing. Which is unfair of me. But this was neither of those things. It was excellent. The writing was SO good. It made me think about Judas Iscariot in a new way. For good or ill, I saw myself in him. I mean, ultimately, if we call Jesus our savior, in our sinfulness it’s all of us that condemned him to die even as we love him. I even felt like I got a fresh perspective on Jesus as we see him from Judas’ perspective and follow his preaching. It made me want to read the gospels again, and shouldn’t that be exactly what a work of fiction about Jesus urges us to do? Return to the source material, the living word? So now I’m reading through Matthew again.
April 1, 2016
From the epilogue (interestingly, at the beginning of the book):
A dog chokes by the side of the road in Capernaum. He is rabid and manged. He is foul and unloved. He is more worthy to live than I.
If only I had never left Jerusalem as a child. If only Herod had never died. If only I had never laid eyes on the gaunt man by the side of the Jordan.
The Nazarene.
They will say that I betrayed him, that I reduced his price to thirty silver shekels. That I turned against my master. They do not know me.
They will not ask themselves if they might have done the same. To even think it is to court the possibility that we may not be so different. It takes the right to condemn, the comfort in saying, “At least I am not like him!”
My master taught me a parable about that, once.
But if they do not know me, neither did they know him. And so the truth goes with me to the abyss…
…The cut of the noose.
The sun is setting. Sound has left my ears, but I can feel the wind rushing through the valley and past me like a stolen breath, east toward the wilderness as though borne on cloven hooves.
There. The dark light.
And now I am afraid. Because I know that in Sheol no one praises God but ruminates forever on what might have been.
I was very hesitant to read this book, waiting over three years to start it. Tosca Lee takes the Biblical view of Judas, the most infamous betrayer in the history of mankind, injects it with a different viewpoint—Judas’—and comes up with a fascinating, heart-wrenching, providing *possible* insight into Judas’ heart and motives behind his betrayal of Jesus Christ. The liberties she takes with scripture will cause some to cry, “Heresy!” taking great offense at the fact that this book doesn’t line up with the Gospel records. Remember, this is a fictionalization of historical events leading to the most important event in all of history.
Before I continue on with this review, in the interest of transparency, I should note that I am a Christian (Independent Baptist), head deacon at my church, host Bible studies in my home every Friday night to more than fifty people, and I preach sermons every Sunday afternoon at local assisted living centers. I study the Bible extensively, and research and prepare my own sermons. I believe that Scripture is God-breathed, and sent to us to show His love for us. Keep all this in mind as you read my review.
As I mentioned, this book does not line up exactly with the four Gospel accounts. Even the Gospel accounts don’t line up with each other, because each is recorded from a different viewpoint, with a different focus and different audience. Taken together, the Gospel accounts provide a more complete picture of who Jesus Christ is, and why He came to earth. Tosca Lee does take some liberties with the biblical text for dramatic effect, for plotting, and to simply move the story along. She skips some events altogether, and misses some points that I was surprised were left out. She even portrays Jesus as a man potentially on the edge of madness. If the fact that this book doesn’t line up with the Gospels bothers you, and that the author takes these liberties, skip this book.
Ms. Lee’s portrayal of Judas is quite possibly very accurate. He vacillates between his love for His Master, Jesus, his passion for Israel, and his desire to see her liberated from Roman rule. In this, she is spot-on. For a couple hundred years, the Jewish people suffered under the Roman yoke, and especially after being held captive previously by the Babylonian and the Egyptian Empires, they desired nothing greater than for an earthly redeemer to come and free them from captivity. Unfortunately, this desire biased their interpretation of scriptural prophecy, and their view of the coming Messiah did not line up with the truth of God’s Word. It all boiled down to them wanting immediate redemption, something vastly different than what God had planned.
There were many Jewish uprisings and revolts against the Roman rule, usually about every 20-30 years, often lead by the latest man to declare himself the Messiah. All of these uprisings and revolts were put down violently, with the Jewish leaders and thousands of followers killed, tortured and crucified as an example to those remaining. This is where the story of Judas begins: his father and older brother are among thousands crucified for being a part of an attempt to overthrow Roman rule in the Palestine region after the death of King Herod, leaving 6-year old Judas and his mother to live on the run for many months, and providing the foundation for Judas to live his life feeling as if he’s “unclean” and “unworthy to live his life as a proper Jew”, struggling to live his life guided by the Law and his conscience.
Ms. Lee obviously conducted a ton of research into the historical aspect. From the description of the Roman eagle mounted on the Temple complex to the tassels on the priests’ fine linen robes, she has researched the most minute details, all providing for a very rich reading experience. She captures each scene incredibly well. The tension slowly builds throughout the book until the expected ending in breathtaking fashion. She captures emotions during intense scenes, like the calming of the storm on the Sea of Galilee and the healing of demoniac of Gadara. The narrative is fluid, the descriptions of the geography and the cities is precise, no matter if the scene is on the Temple Mount, in the Jordan River, or standing outside of the tomb of Lazarus. Even the scene where Judas finally betrays Christ for 30 pieces of Tyrian silver (the price of a slave) is so meticulously detailed, you are almost there as the manipulating scribes and Pharisees, licking their chops, twisting Judas’ words and “playing” him into betraying his Master.
As I said, this is a fascinating look at one history regards as the greatest villain that ever lived, hated for his betrayal, his named cursed for all time. Tosca Lee makes him a sympathetic character, challenging the reader to relook at Judas in light of how they would have reacted in his shoes. This is an extremely complex book, inventive, well thought out, vividly portrayed, and extremely well-written. Even though it is not truly scriptural, it reflects the hope and forgiveness, love and compassion of Christ, even to the one who betrayed Him.
A dog chokes by the side of the road in Capernaum. He is rabid and manged. He is foul and unloved. He is more worthy to live than I.
If only I had never left Jerusalem as a child. If only Herod had never died. If only I had never laid eyes on the gaunt man by the side of the Jordan.
The Nazarene.
They will say that I betrayed him, that I reduced his price to thirty silver shekels. That I turned against my master. They do not know me.
They will not ask themselves if they might have done the same. To even think it is to court the possibility that we may not be so different. It takes the right to condemn, the comfort in saying, “At least I am not like him!”
My master taught me a parable about that, once.
But if they do not know me, neither did they know him. And so the truth goes with me to the abyss…
…The cut of the noose.
The sun is setting. Sound has left my ears, but I can feel the wind rushing through the valley and past me like a stolen breath, east toward the wilderness as though borne on cloven hooves.
There. The dark light.
And now I am afraid. Because I know that in Sheol no one praises God but ruminates forever on what might have been.
I was very hesitant to read this book, waiting over three years to start it. Tosca Lee takes the Biblical view of Judas, the most infamous betrayer in the history of mankind, injects it with a different viewpoint—Judas’—and comes up with a fascinating, heart-wrenching, providing *possible* insight into Judas’ heart and motives behind his betrayal of Jesus Christ. The liberties she takes with scripture will cause some to cry, “Heresy!” taking great offense at the fact that this book doesn’t line up with the Gospel records. Remember, this is a fictionalization of historical events leading to the most important event in all of history.
Before I continue on with this review, in the interest of transparency, I should note that I am a Christian (Independent Baptist), head deacon at my church, host Bible studies in my home every Friday night to more than fifty people, and I preach sermons every Sunday afternoon at local assisted living centers. I study the Bible extensively, and research and prepare my own sermons. I believe that Scripture is God-breathed, and sent to us to show His love for us. Keep all this in mind as you read my review.
As I mentioned, this book does not line up exactly with the four Gospel accounts. Even the Gospel accounts don’t line up with each other, because each is recorded from a different viewpoint, with a different focus and different audience. Taken together, the Gospel accounts provide a more complete picture of who Jesus Christ is, and why He came to earth. Tosca Lee does take some liberties with the biblical text for dramatic effect, for plotting, and to simply move the story along. She skips some events altogether, and misses some points that I was surprised were left out. She even portrays Jesus as a man potentially on the edge of madness. If the fact that this book doesn’t line up with the Gospels bothers you, and that the author takes these liberties, skip this book.
Ms. Lee’s portrayal of Judas is quite possibly very accurate. He vacillates between his love for His Master, Jesus, his passion for Israel, and his desire to see her liberated from Roman rule. In this, she is spot-on. For a couple hundred years, the Jewish people suffered under the Roman yoke, and especially after being held captive previously by the Babylonian and the Egyptian Empires, they desired nothing greater than for an earthly redeemer to come and free them from captivity. Unfortunately, this desire biased their interpretation of scriptural prophecy, and their view of the coming Messiah did not line up with the truth of God’s Word. It all boiled down to them wanting immediate redemption, something vastly different than what God had planned.
There were many Jewish uprisings and revolts against the Roman rule, usually about every 20-30 years, often lead by the latest man to declare himself the Messiah. All of these uprisings and revolts were put down violently, with the Jewish leaders and thousands of followers killed, tortured and crucified as an example to those remaining. This is where the story of Judas begins: his father and older brother are among thousands crucified for being a part of an attempt to overthrow Roman rule in the Palestine region after the death of King Herod, leaving 6-year old Judas and his mother to live on the run for many months, and providing the foundation for Judas to live his life feeling as if he’s “unclean” and “unworthy to live his life as a proper Jew”, struggling to live his life guided by the Law and his conscience.
Ms. Lee obviously conducted a ton of research into the historical aspect. From the description of the Roman eagle mounted on the Temple complex to the tassels on the priests’ fine linen robes, she has researched the most minute details, all providing for a very rich reading experience. She captures each scene incredibly well. The tension slowly builds throughout the book until the expected ending in breathtaking fashion. She captures emotions during intense scenes, like the calming of the storm on the Sea of Galilee and the healing of demoniac of Gadara. The narrative is fluid, the descriptions of the geography and the cities is precise, no matter if the scene is on the Temple Mount, in the Jordan River, or standing outside of the tomb of Lazarus. Even the scene where Judas finally betrays Christ for 30 pieces of Tyrian silver (the price of a slave) is so meticulously detailed, you are almost there as the manipulating scribes and Pharisees, licking their chops, twisting Judas’ words and “playing” him into betraying his Master.
As I said, this is a fascinating look at one history regards as the greatest villain that ever lived, hated for his betrayal, his named cursed for all time. Tosca Lee makes him a sympathetic character, challenging the reader to relook at Judas in light of how they would have reacted in his shoes. This is an extremely complex book, inventive, well thought out, vividly portrayed, and extremely well-written. Even though it is not truly scriptural, it reflects the hope and forgiveness, love and compassion of Christ, even to the one who betrayed Him.
June 26, 2022
This is a thoughtful, slow, insightful story about Judas Iscariot from childhood to death.
I LOVED it. I was so captured by Lee's insight into Judas' childhood and what impacted his personality when we meet him in the Bible.
I thought the perspective that Judas wasn't the all bad person we judge him to be was right on point. Seeing his relationship with Jesus was really fascinating. I liked it a lot.
The ending was beautiful.
I LOVED it. I was so captured by Lee's insight into Judas' childhood and what impacted his personality when we meet him in the Bible.
I thought the perspective that Judas wasn't the all bad person we judge him to be was right on point. Seeing his relationship with Jesus was really fascinating. I liked it a lot.
The ending was beautiful.
April 11, 2023
"I had taken an action that would absolve me of guilt under the law but condemned my heart."
Before reading this book I aquatinted Judas Iscariot with evil; a person driven by pride and ambition. However, I realized I was not that different than Judas. So often I found myself reading the scriptures with a two dimensional image of those in the bible. But upon reading this book I've had a significant change of perspective.
I was humbled.
Only two things distinguished me from Judas, repentance and the blood of Jesus Christ. Tosca Lee wrote another illusive biblical character with vulnerability, biblical accuracy and impeccable application of the historical political, economic and social climate of the time.
I could not recommend this book enough.
Before reading this book I aquatinted Judas Iscariot with evil; a person driven by pride and ambition. However, I realized I was not that different than Judas. So often I found myself reading the scriptures with a two dimensional image of those in the bible. But upon reading this book I've had a significant change of perspective.
I was humbled.
Only two things distinguished me from Judas, repentance and the blood of Jesus Christ. Tosca Lee wrote another illusive biblical character with vulnerability, biblical accuracy and impeccable application of the historical political, economic and social climate of the time.
I could not recommend this book enough.
August 24, 2018
Judas is a name often used synonymous with betrayal or treason.
But here comes a story where Judas Iscariot presents his own story.
It starts with him at the age of 6, when his family flees Jerusalem after the death of Herod.
His older brother Joshua is smart and helps their father in tasks in which Judas gets excluded as too young. It sparks jealousy in Judas. But everything changes in a blink of an eye, when Sepphoris is under siege by Romans.
They continue their journey to Kerioth, where his mother’s family resides. There he excels at school. And later to continue his education, he returns to the Holy City.
“No prophet has been seen in four hundred years.”
The day he sees Nazarene for the first time in his gaze he sees affinity, instant connection.
The stories of miracles performed by Nazarene reach him soon after. Now he wants to learn about the Nazarene. He fallows him to Galilee and Capernaum.
The miracles are followed by questionable behavior of Jesus, defying Pharisee and flouting propriety. He defies any law, any custom and any logic. He is a concern to most.
The first part of the book, revealing the story of Judas is very interesting with good pace. And the second part, the following of Jesus is very descriptive, slowing the pace tremendously.
@FB/BestHistoricalFiction
But here comes a story where Judas Iscariot presents his own story.
It starts with him at the age of 6, when his family flees Jerusalem after the death of Herod.
His older brother Joshua is smart and helps their father in tasks in which Judas gets excluded as too young. It sparks jealousy in Judas. But everything changes in a blink of an eye, when Sepphoris is under siege by Romans.
They continue their journey to Kerioth, where his mother’s family resides. There he excels at school. And later to continue his education, he returns to the Holy City.
“No prophet has been seen in four hundred years.”
The day he sees Nazarene for the first time in his gaze he sees affinity, instant connection.
The stories of miracles performed by Nazarene reach him soon after. Now he wants to learn about the Nazarene. He fallows him to Galilee and Capernaum.
The miracles are followed by questionable behavior of Jesus, defying Pharisee and flouting propriety. He defies any law, any custom and any logic. He is a concern to most.
The first part of the book, revealing the story of Judas is very interesting with good pace. And the second part, the following of Jesus is very descriptive, slowing the pace tremendously.
@FB/BestHistoricalFiction
February 11, 2013
Riveting….explosive…..revolutionary are just a few meager words that describe Tosca Lee’s latest literary masterpiece. She has immersed herself in the life and time of the well-known disciple of Jesus Christ known as Judas Iscariot. She brilliantly succeeded in humanizing this notorious traitor of Jesus Christ. She skillfully and intricately laid before our eyes an intimate, less traveled path of the motivations and desires that Judas passionately followed to the end of his life.
We are granted the honor to have such an intimate experience with Judas as we walk alongside him as his life is turned upside down and forever twisted and altered by the effects of the cruel and brutal Roman occupation of Jerusalem and the surrounding Jewish cities. My heart broke at seeing all of the horror and evil that Judas and his family had to endure when he was a young boy. Seeing such ugliness that most of us only read about in books at such an impressionable age transformed him into the driven and empty man that he became.
The sum total of Judas’s existence in light of the Jewish law and religious elite of that time was to strive to find out for himself if God truly existed and to be cleansed by Him and made pure. If we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that this is also the same ruthless pursuit that we all tirelessly struggle to answer. No matter how much we might like to separate ourselves from Judas, we find that more and more we are just like him. We are all lost in the darkness stumbling around on our hands and knees with tears streaming down our faces screaming and whispering out to God desperate to know if He is real and how He will save us from ourselves. Frighteningly enough, the darkness that surrounds Judas and us is not from the pit of Hell like we would convince those around us that it is, but in reality it is leaking and bubbling up from the depths of our own heart. The madness and evil that haunted Judas and haunts us still is born from the evil that lives inside us that can only be expelled with the light of God’s radiantly pure love. However, no amount of persuasion of others can make us understand this. Just like Judas, we have to see this for ourselves no matter how long it takes us to blindly stumble upon this shocking revelation.
Jesus message at that day and time was just as radical as this piece of haunting truth. He turned the religious community on its ear with his teaching, His words, and his strange yet simple parables. He drove people into madness as He taught love rather than the harsh, skin-deep hollowness of what had become of the Jewish law at that time. It was this mad, revolutionary idea that God loved them and wanted them to love each other including their Roman oppressors that the religious elite and learned men like Judas were dumbfounded and either driven deeper into their pious depravity or dared to be changed and remade by the desperately deep craving that they had for His love. I believe it was the overwhelming light of Jesus message of love which laid bare the base desires of the religious elite that led to their ravenous calling for His death. Evil can’t stand when good shines its light on it and reveals its ugliness not only to others but especially to itself. It will do anything to hide itself in the shadows once again while destroying the light that exposed itself.
At the end of this journey that we have taken with Judas, we find that we have one question to answer - the same question that has been posed for the past 2,000 years. Why did Judas betray Jesus? Tosca gently yet decisively leads us to the answer of this question. She lays before us the consideration that Judas is no different than any of us. In fact, I believe that she proposes that we are all Judases in the depths of our hearts, and we need to beware that we do not fall into the same traps and pitfalls that he did. We need to be sure that we choose love over the law - that we choose life over death\power\influence.
I don’t believe that Judas hated Jesus. Rather, I believe that Judas was transformed by Jesus and His message of love, but I also believe that the evil in us fights for control of us just as vehemently as Jesus fights for our love. It’s this battle that was at the heart of Judas’s betrayal. When we don’t give our whole hearts to Jesus to be filled with His love, we allow the darkness to silently creep in and slowly take control back. I believe that the answer to the accusation of guilt lies in Judas’s fear of giving Jesus full control over his heart. While he reveled in and marveled at the intensity and completeness of Jesus’s love for him, he didn’t believe that Jesus could love such a man as him. He held back his heart, and in so doing allowed the darkness from his past to overcome him and give up control of his heart to the teachers of the law who wanted to remain in the luscious darkness of their selfish ways. He allowed these evil men to unknowingly work through him to quash the light that was brought into their world for a short time, but they unknowingly did us an immense favor in ushering in God’s new kingdom of devastating love and unfathomable forgiveness for the benefit of all mankind.
Instead of condemning Judas, we need to learn from him. We need to see him in ourselves and strive to become what he deeply longed to become but was so terrified to allow himself to embrace. We need to realize that Judas is all of us. He is every man, and we need to come to the understanding that we have to die to ourselves in order to live for and with Jesus in this time and in His coming kingdom.
This is a story that will not only transform your heart but will also pour the intoxicating light of God’s love into your life. You will never be able to think of Judas or yourself in the same way ever again. Even though our culture is so far removed from the Jewish culture of 2,000 years ago, in our hearts, the human race is still the same band of men prone to great evil and yet who desperately search for their own salvation and tirelessly crave the love of the almighty Creator of the universe. This book is a must read for those who desire to be led into the past by a master storyteller who skillfully creates a glorious tapestry filled with rich culture, human frailty, and unrestrained love to unmask this man of loathing and deceit in order to deepen our own relationship with God.
Tosca gently wipes away the stale, Sunday school understanding from both our eyes and our heart and offers up a fresh take on Jesus, His life and work, and how it touched Judas and the other disciples around him. She breathes life into Jesus and His powerful effect on those around Him. This story will have you gasping for air and reeling at how you feel you have missed knowing Jesus at this depth your entire life. Your heart will long for the same meaningful and palatable relationship that Judas had with Jesus, and it will leave you refusing to settle for anything less.
We are granted the honor to have such an intimate experience with Judas as we walk alongside him as his life is turned upside down and forever twisted and altered by the effects of the cruel and brutal Roman occupation of Jerusalem and the surrounding Jewish cities. My heart broke at seeing all of the horror and evil that Judas and his family had to endure when he was a young boy. Seeing such ugliness that most of us only read about in books at such an impressionable age transformed him into the driven and empty man that he became.
The sum total of Judas’s existence in light of the Jewish law and religious elite of that time was to strive to find out for himself if God truly existed and to be cleansed by Him and made pure. If we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that this is also the same ruthless pursuit that we all tirelessly struggle to answer. No matter how much we might like to separate ourselves from Judas, we find that more and more we are just like him. We are all lost in the darkness stumbling around on our hands and knees with tears streaming down our faces screaming and whispering out to God desperate to know if He is real and how He will save us from ourselves. Frighteningly enough, the darkness that surrounds Judas and us is not from the pit of Hell like we would convince those around us that it is, but in reality it is leaking and bubbling up from the depths of our own heart. The madness and evil that haunted Judas and haunts us still is born from the evil that lives inside us that can only be expelled with the light of God’s radiantly pure love. However, no amount of persuasion of others can make us understand this. Just like Judas, we have to see this for ourselves no matter how long it takes us to blindly stumble upon this shocking revelation.
Jesus message at that day and time was just as radical as this piece of haunting truth. He turned the religious community on its ear with his teaching, His words, and his strange yet simple parables. He drove people into madness as He taught love rather than the harsh, skin-deep hollowness of what had become of the Jewish law at that time. It was this mad, revolutionary idea that God loved them and wanted them to love each other including their Roman oppressors that the religious elite and learned men like Judas were dumbfounded and either driven deeper into their pious depravity or dared to be changed and remade by the desperately deep craving that they had for His love. I believe it was the overwhelming light of Jesus message of love which laid bare the base desires of the religious elite that led to their ravenous calling for His death. Evil can’t stand when good shines its light on it and reveals its ugliness not only to others but especially to itself. It will do anything to hide itself in the shadows once again while destroying the light that exposed itself.
At the end of this journey that we have taken with Judas, we find that we have one question to answer - the same question that has been posed for the past 2,000 years. Why did Judas betray Jesus? Tosca gently yet decisively leads us to the answer of this question. She lays before us the consideration that Judas is no different than any of us. In fact, I believe that she proposes that we are all Judases in the depths of our hearts, and we need to beware that we do not fall into the same traps and pitfalls that he did. We need to be sure that we choose love over the law - that we choose life over death\power\influence.
I don’t believe that Judas hated Jesus. Rather, I believe that Judas was transformed by Jesus and His message of love, but I also believe that the evil in us fights for control of us just as vehemently as Jesus fights for our love. It’s this battle that was at the heart of Judas’s betrayal. When we don’t give our whole hearts to Jesus to be filled with His love, we allow the darkness to silently creep in and slowly take control back. I believe that the answer to the accusation of guilt lies in Judas’s fear of giving Jesus full control over his heart. While he reveled in and marveled at the intensity and completeness of Jesus’s love for him, he didn’t believe that Jesus could love such a man as him. He held back his heart, and in so doing allowed the darkness from his past to overcome him and give up control of his heart to the teachers of the law who wanted to remain in the luscious darkness of their selfish ways. He allowed these evil men to unknowingly work through him to quash the light that was brought into their world for a short time, but they unknowingly did us an immense favor in ushering in God’s new kingdom of devastating love and unfathomable forgiveness for the benefit of all mankind.
Instead of condemning Judas, we need to learn from him. We need to see him in ourselves and strive to become what he deeply longed to become but was so terrified to allow himself to embrace. We need to realize that Judas is all of us. He is every man, and we need to come to the understanding that we have to die to ourselves in order to live for and with Jesus in this time and in His coming kingdom.
This is a story that will not only transform your heart but will also pour the intoxicating light of God’s love into your life. You will never be able to think of Judas or yourself in the same way ever again. Even though our culture is so far removed from the Jewish culture of 2,000 years ago, in our hearts, the human race is still the same band of men prone to great evil and yet who desperately search for their own salvation and tirelessly crave the love of the almighty Creator of the universe. This book is a must read for those who desire to be led into the past by a master storyteller who skillfully creates a glorious tapestry filled with rich culture, human frailty, and unrestrained love to unmask this man of loathing and deceit in order to deepen our own relationship with God.
Tosca gently wipes away the stale, Sunday school understanding from both our eyes and our heart and offers up a fresh take on Jesus, His life and work, and how it touched Judas and the other disciples around him. She breathes life into Jesus and His powerful effect on those around Him. This story will have you gasping for air and reeling at how you feel you have missed knowing Jesus at this depth your entire life. Your heart will long for the same meaningful and palatable relationship that Judas had with Jesus, and it will leave you refusing to settle for anything less.
October 29, 2023
Iscariot - Tosca Lee - 5 Stars - A beautiful, thought-provoking biblical fiction about Judas
Tosca Lee's "Iscariot" is such a thought-provoking novel that dives deep into the life and character of Judas Iscariot. We see his life with his family, the tragedy he went through and his life as he walked with Jesus. Tosca Lee truly explores the complexity of human nature, faith and the ultimate act of betrayal. We see Judas who grapples with his loyalty to Jesus but as the reader you find yourself looking at Judas with such sympathy and truly I can see myself in him - I have been a Judas to others in the past and to Jesus. I think that's what Tosca Lee is wanting us to take a step back and think about -- true conviction in many moments throughout this book for ourselves, return to the Gospels in our Bible, return to His living word and humble ourselves because we are not so different than Judas was. As my friend Chrissie said in her review, only two things distinguish me from Judas -- repentance and the blood of Jesus Christ. I am saved by grace through Jesus but have I ever been a Judas? Yes.
We often think of Judas as a traitor, betrayer, thief etc. This book made me think more about Judas than I ever have before and I truly thank Tosca Lee for taking on such a controversial biblical figure and writing his story. You can see the amount of research she did and I truly appreciated her author's note as well. It makes you think.
The historical and biblical accuracy in this book is also wonderful. I loved seeing the relationship with Jesus and Judas' POV as they walked through the miracles and teachings of Him.
Overall, Iscariot is a compelling and emotionally charged novel that offers a fresh perspective on one of the most infamous figures in history. Readers who appreciate historical and biblical fiction will find this book very thought provoking and a rewarding read. It's a favorite of all time and one of my most prized books now.
Thank you to the author for sending a copy of this book to read and review - all opinions and thoughts are my own.
Tosca Lee's "Iscariot" is such a thought-provoking novel that dives deep into the life and character of Judas Iscariot. We see his life with his family, the tragedy he went through and his life as he walked with Jesus. Tosca Lee truly explores the complexity of human nature, faith and the ultimate act of betrayal. We see Judas who grapples with his loyalty to Jesus but as the reader you find yourself looking at Judas with such sympathy and truly I can see myself in him - I have been a Judas to others in the past and to Jesus. I think that's what Tosca Lee is wanting us to take a step back and think about -- true conviction in many moments throughout this book for ourselves, return to the Gospels in our Bible, return to His living word and humble ourselves because we are not so different than Judas was. As my friend Chrissie said in her review, only two things distinguish me from Judas -- repentance and the blood of Jesus Christ. I am saved by grace through Jesus but have I ever been a Judas? Yes.
We often think of Judas as a traitor, betrayer, thief etc. This book made me think more about Judas than I ever have before and I truly thank Tosca Lee for taking on such a controversial biblical figure and writing his story. You can see the amount of research she did and I truly appreciated her author's note as well. It makes you think.
The historical and biblical accuracy in this book is also wonderful. I loved seeing the relationship with Jesus and Judas' POV as they walked through the miracles and teachings of Him.
Overall, Iscariot is a compelling and emotionally charged novel that offers a fresh perspective on one of the most infamous figures in history. Readers who appreciate historical and biblical fiction will find this book very thought provoking and a rewarding read. It's a favorite of all time and one of my most prized books now.
Thank you to the author for sending a copy of this book to read and review - all opinions and thoughts are my own.
March 7, 2013
[hurriedly wipes eyes] Did anybody see that? No? Good.
Iscariot is one of those rare and dangerous novels that makes you *think.* Told from Judas's point of view, Iscariot is basically a speculative look at the gospel accounts leading up to Judas's betrayal of Christ. Instead of treating the story as a historical account like the Bible, Tosca Lee delves deep into the emotions of those who have chosen to follow Jesus. Especially moving were the scenes where Jesus heals the leper and the paralytic. I think oftentimes we forget the impact that Jesus's miracles had on people because we've heard about them our entire lives. But for the apostles and others witnessing the miracles firsthand, it must have been astonishing (just as it would be for us if we were to witness them!).
Instead of treating Judas as a villain, Lee paints a human portrait of a man who, having lost everything, devotes his life to Christ. Judas considers Jesus his best friend. Jesus is his everything, even though most of the time Judas can't understand why Jesus says and does the "heretical" things that upset the religious leaders of their day. And when Judas betrays him in the end, it is not because of hatred, but of love. I won't spoil any more of the plot for you. You will have to read it yourself!
As I said in the beginning, this book makes the reader think. Imagine if Jesus came back today. Would he upset Christian leaders by calling them hypocrites? Would he be drawn to crowds of Goths and Hell's Angels and choose his apostles from among the members of street gangs?
Perhaps I think too much. But I think this novel serves as a reminder that Jesus came to heal the sick and the sinners instead of the righteous--as well as the one who would ultimately betray him.
Iscariot is one of those rare and dangerous novels that makes you *think.* Told from Judas's point of view, Iscariot is basically a speculative look at the gospel accounts leading up to Judas's betrayal of Christ. Instead of treating the story as a historical account like the Bible, Tosca Lee delves deep into the emotions of those who have chosen to follow Jesus. Especially moving were the scenes where Jesus heals the leper and the paralytic. I think oftentimes we forget the impact that Jesus's miracles had on people because we've heard about them our entire lives. But for the apostles and others witnessing the miracles firsthand, it must have been astonishing (just as it would be for us if we were to witness them!).
Instead of treating Judas as a villain, Lee paints a human portrait of a man who, having lost everything, devotes his life to Christ. Judas considers Jesus his best friend. Jesus is his everything, even though most of the time Judas can't understand why Jesus says and does the "heretical" things that upset the religious leaders of their day. And when Judas betrays him in the end, it is not because of hatred, but of love. I won't spoil any more of the plot for you. You will have to read it yourself!
As I said in the beginning, this book makes the reader think. Imagine if Jesus came back today. Would he upset Christian leaders by calling them hypocrites? Would he be drawn to crowds of Goths and Hell's Angels and choose his apostles from among the members of street gangs?
Perhaps I think too much. But I think this novel serves as a reminder that Jesus came to heal the sick and the sinners instead of the righteous--as well as the one who would ultimately betray him.
July 14, 2021
This was an very interesting read. As a born and raised Christian I can honestly say I've never put much thought into Judas's motivation behind his betrayal of Christ. I loved getting a little perspective on how Jesus was perceived during his time on earth and how his disciples could have felt about him. Such a thought provoking book. Will definitely have to re-read in physical form at some point.
January 27, 2013
Nobody puts skin on biblical figures and brings them to life as well as Tosca Lee. For some reason she also picks the toughest ones to portray in fiction. This novel, Iscariot, rang true to me. Her depiction of Judas Iscariot's belief system had a convincing historical basis. And unlike the stereotyped condemned man who personified betrayal, she made him human and someone who truly did love Jesus when he became one of the disciples. Even in the end, she showed his regrets and they made sense given the story up to that point. I didn't know how she'd pull off making him a sympathetic character, but she did it well!
There was a lot of symbolism in this novel including the dirt that lingered in the bowl when it came time to wash Judas's feet the night Jesus was betrayed. I loved how the author brought the scriptures to life with this book. So many things I'd read many times before brought tears to my eyes as I saw them unfold in my head. I understood their horror when he said they needed to eat his flesh and drink his blood.
The many miracles he performed brought tears to my eyes. And perhaps the best of all, seeing the prophecies fulfilled on the page and Judas's recollection of them as he pondering everything in his heart really made an impact on me. I have always loved reading about the fact that Jesus never did what people expected. This is shown very well in Iscariot. I loved this story so much it's making my favorite fiction list for 2013!
There was a lot of symbolism in this novel including the dirt that lingered in the bowl when it came time to wash Judas's feet the night Jesus was betrayed. I loved how the author brought the scriptures to life with this book. So many things I'd read many times before brought tears to my eyes as I saw them unfold in my head. I understood their horror when he said they needed to eat his flesh and drink his blood.
The many miracles he performed brought tears to my eyes. And perhaps the best of all, seeing the prophecies fulfilled on the page and Judas's recollection of them as he pondering everything in his heart really made an impact on me. I have always loved reading about the fact that Jesus never did what people expected. This is shown very well in Iscariot. I loved this story so much it's making my favorite fiction list for 2013!
December 11, 2012
I was given an Advanced Reader’s copy of this book due to be published in February 2013 by Simon and Schuster Canada.
I don’t normally read Biblical fiction. It just seems so contrived to me and I’m never happy with the way characters are portrayed. So it was with some hesitation that I accepted this book to review. However, I hooked by the end of the first chapter.
I’ve always considered Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Jesus as an imposter; someone that Jesus allowed among his disciples because of the part he needed to play in the unfolding of Jesus’ own story. But Tosca Lee portrays him as a devoted follower of Jesus. The back story that she creates for Judas is completely plausible and it’s fascinating to watch his love for Jesus grow throughout her story. He is in constant conflict though because he is also a passionate follower of the Law and the belief that the Messiah would come as a conqueror of Rome. As the story unfolds and he becomes more and more aware of Jesus’ true purpose the conflict in Judas grows.
Lee’s ability to create atmosphere and memorable characters is truly inspired. I felt like I was there; participating in the various scenes and feeling the emotions of the characters as they try to reconcile who Jesus is with the ideas of messiah that they’ve grown up with. I felt deeply for Judas and his struggles. She handles the end of the story with grace and compassion and again I felt that it was an entirely plausible scenario.
Her story is well-researched and very well written and I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in a deeper understanding of Jesus and the man who betrayed Him. I’d encourage you to pick it up in February when it is published.
I don’t normally read Biblical fiction. It just seems so contrived to me and I’m never happy with the way characters are portrayed. So it was with some hesitation that I accepted this book to review. However, I hooked by the end of the first chapter.
I’ve always considered Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Jesus as an imposter; someone that Jesus allowed among his disciples because of the part he needed to play in the unfolding of Jesus’ own story. But Tosca Lee portrays him as a devoted follower of Jesus. The back story that she creates for Judas is completely plausible and it’s fascinating to watch his love for Jesus grow throughout her story. He is in constant conflict though because he is also a passionate follower of the Law and the belief that the Messiah would come as a conqueror of Rome. As the story unfolds and he becomes more and more aware of Jesus’ true purpose the conflict in Judas grows.
Lee’s ability to create atmosphere and memorable characters is truly inspired. I felt like I was there; participating in the various scenes and feeling the emotions of the characters as they try to reconcile who Jesus is with the ideas of messiah that they’ve grown up with. I felt deeply for Judas and his struggles. She handles the end of the story with grace and compassion and again I felt that it was an entirely plausible scenario.
Her story is well-researched and very well written and I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in a deeper understanding of Jesus and the man who betrayed Him. I’d encourage you to pick it up in February when it is published.
March 9, 2019
The one word to describe this book: strange.
Biblical fiction is one of my favourite genres, so I was looking forward to reading this book. I thought it would be refreshing to see Judas from a different angle, and perhaps figure out why someone so close to Jesus would actually betray him. In a way, it was. The author told a very different story of Judas that is believable, and makes sense. Judas 'betrayed' Jesus in the hope of protecting him. Then, when he saw that in actual fact he had given up his master to be crucified, he could do no less than hang himself. That side of the story makes sense, and I liked it.
But, while this book is about Judas, it also tells the story of Jesus. And that's the part I couldn't reconcile with. To me it seems that the author, in trying to portray Judas as better than we've always thought, has put Jesus down, and portrayed him as a weakling, who acted very irrationally. Okay, Jesus did spend nights without sleeping, so maybe he was physically weak. But he spent them praying, which would have given him more than human strength - he should've been described as strong. And of course, many of his acts would've appeared strange to the multitude, and it's true that even his disciples couldn't understand all of them. But I just felt this was portrayed wrongly; Jesus was not a madman, and everything he did had a purpose. He didn't just cleanse the temple, or refrain from giving signs to incite the anger of the Pharisees and haste his own death. I realize that this is the story of Jesus as told by Judas, and that's what Judas thought at times, so no wonder it came across that way. But I can't say this book has given me higher regard for the Jesus, so to me, that is a problem.
Oh, and one more thing that annoyed me: this book is written in this modern style of one-word paragraphs, and unfinished sentences. Like this. Or this.
No. Maybe occasional incomplete sentences, but not every single paragraph of every single page. Why can't people write properly anymore?
[Sorry. Excuse the rant.]
Edit: After reading it again four years later now, I appreciated more things about the story and have much less of a problem with the writing style. But I'm still not comfortable with the portrayal of Jesus. It doesn't sit well with me, but it's an interesting perspective, and it's good to give thought to the assumptions I have about the story.
Biblical fiction is one of my favourite genres, so I was looking forward to reading this book. I thought it would be refreshing to see Judas from a different angle, and perhaps figure out why someone so close to Jesus would actually betray him. In a way, it was. The author told a very different story of Judas that is believable, and makes sense. Judas 'betrayed' Jesus in the hope of protecting him. Then, when he saw that in actual fact he had given up his master to be crucified, he could do no less than hang himself. That side of the story makes sense, and I liked it.
But, while this book is about Judas, it also tells the story of Jesus. And that's the part I couldn't reconcile with. To me it seems that the author, in trying to portray Judas as better than we've always thought, has put Jesus down, and portrayed him as a weakling, who acted very irrationally. Okay, Jesus did spend nights without sleeping, so maybe he was physically weak. But he spent them praying, which would have given him more than human strength - he should've been described as strong. And of course, many of his acts would've appeared strange to the multitude, and it's true that even his disciples couldn't understand all of them. But I just felt this was portrayed wrongly; Jesus was not a madman, and everything he did had a purpose. He didn't just cleanse the temple, or refrain from giving signs to incite the anger of the Pharisees and haste his own death. I realize that this is the story of Jesus as told by Judas, and that's what Judas thought at times, so no wonder it came across that way. But I can't say this book has given me higher regard for the Jesus, so to me, that is a problem.
Oh, and one more thing that annoyed me: this book is written in this modern style of one-word paragraphs, and unfinished sentences. Like this. Or this.
No. Maybe occasional incomplete sentences, but not every single paragraph of every single page. Why can't people write properly anymore?
[Sorry. Excuse the rant.]
Edit: After reading it again four years later now, I appreciated more things about the story and have much less of a problem with the writing style. But I'm still not comfortable with the portrayal of Jesus. It doesn't sit well with me, but it's an interesting perspective, and it's good to give thought to the assumptions I have about the story.
April 15, 2013
One of the reviewers had stated that this book didn't feel real and that the disciples didn't feel real and couldn't see how they went on to start a church because they didn't have enough faith. I feel the exact opposite, yes this book does show the disciples as human beings who struggled with faith as much as we do in this present age, but to me this added to the believability of this book. We have each read the gospels and we know the story and therefore we think we would have acted differently had we lived, walked, talked with and seen Jesus ourselves...however this book shows how real people without a glimpse into the future would act. More importantly I felt the character of Judas was very real. Through this story I felt his doubts, his longing for a Messiah, for someone to fight for him and for his people, to bring down the Romans with a crushing blow, to bring down the hypocrites in the temple...and his dissapointment when that did not happen. Tosca Lee does an extraordinary job in this story and it moved me to tears because it made me look at myself and all my doubts and I saw the Judas in me. It made me see that I too could have been Judas. The ending was good too but I was hoping for something a bit different, but that is the writer in me seeing a thousand different possibilities. Overall, I loved this book and look forward for more stories from this author...oh, and I highly recommend this one! It is definatly one of Tosca's best so far!
March 20, 2014
My Jesus pickle..
I have gone and got myself into a GR rating pickle. I only read Iscariot: A Novel of Judas to approximately halfway and yet I feel it is okay to still give the book 3 stars out of 5. Usually I have a twinge of remorse when I rate a book I have not finished. In the case of Iscariot, however, I do not feel remorse at all. Because it was not the quality of the book itself that made me stop reading, it was the discovery that it was fantasy.
Calling it a fantasy may be a bit strong for those who believe in the miracles Jesus is said to have performed, but for those who are not religious and who do not believe in these kinds of miracles (I fall into both of these categories) this book cannot be anything but fantasy.
And that is the base from which my opinion stems.
I chose to read this book based on the marketing. Iscariot is marketed as the real story of Judas Iscariot. I took this, and the book's advertisements and promotional videos, to mean the book would be the story of Judas and Jesus, only without the supernatural elements. And yes, I honestly believe that if an author wants to write such a story, it is achievable.
I thought the author had written a book that would appeal to all. Irrespective of religion or religious stance. I thought she would keep the miracles and the supernatural elements within the realms of the plausible. So you can make of them what you will dependant upon where your beliefs lay.
If you wish them to be religious miracles they will be. If you wish them to be explainable they are. Clearly this was a mistake. To go into this book expecting an unbiased tale.
Tosca Lee blew a great opportunity to bring the story of Judas and Jesus to every kind of reader. She made this a book only for Christians and that is disappointing to me, because I have seen how interested people were in this book...until they tried it for themselves and discovered what I discovered. That Tosca Lee's religious miracles could not be rationalised.
On the other hand. It is a good book for Christians. I would recommend it to you if you are one. But if you are not, and you want to read a book that tells the story of Judas without the fantasy element. This is not the book you want.
And if you want to be challenged on the supernatural elements, the book you probably want is the bible.
If you want to read about miracles, you should probably just go to the source and read the real deal. Even being non religious as I am, I will admit, that apart from the writing being a lot better than this book, there is no better book to relate the story of Jesus and Judas than the bible itself. Not sure why anybody would want to rewrite a story from the bible and not re-purpose it to accommodate readers from all walks of life...but, there it is.
I gave it three stars. I had to be honest about what I was reading. The book is nicely written. Sure, it is not rocket science and there are no literary high wire acts here. It is not as well written as the quotes on the book say and that the Christian reviewers make it out to be. I do not mean it is poor writing, or naïve writing. No. It is good enough. It is just not clever or broadly skilful.
Up until a point I was enjoying the book. If the implausible had not shattered the serenity, this may have been a 4 star book for me.
Since I cannot blame the book for not being what I had expected of it, I had to rate it based on how the book was making me feel up until the point I threw it in.
And that feeling lands somewhere between 3 and 4 stars. Seeing as I did not finish it, I figure 3 is good enough.
I have gone and got myself into a GR rating pickle. I only read Iscariot: A Novel of Judas to approximately halfway and yet I feel it is okay to still give the book 3 stars out of 5. Usually I have a twinge of remorse when I rate a book I have not finished. In the case of Iscariot, however, I do not feel remorse at all. Because it was not the quality of the book itself that made me stop reading, it was the discovery that it was fantasy.
Calling it a fantasy may be a bit strong for those who believe in the miracles Jesus is said to have performed, but for those who are not religious and who do not believe in these kinds of miracles (I fall into both of these categories) this book cannot be anything but fantasy.
And that is the base from which my opinion stems.
I chose to read this book based on the marketing. Iscariot is marketed as the real story of Judas Iscariot. I took this, and the book's advertisements and promotional videos, to mean the book would be the story of Judas and Jesus, only without the supernatural elements. And yes, I honestly believe that if an author wants to write such a story, it is achievable.
I thought the author had written a book that would appeal to all. Irrespective of religion or religious stance. I thought she would keep the miracles and the supernatural elements within the realms of the plausible. So you can make of them what you will dependant upon where your beliefs lay.
If you wish them to be religious miracles they will be. If you wish them to be explainable they are. Clearly this was a mistake. To go into this book expecting an unbiased tale.
Tosca Lee blew a great opportunity to bring the story of Judas and Jesus to every kind of reader. She made this a book only for Christians and that is disappointing to me, because I have seen how interested people were in this book...until they tried it for themselves and discovered what I discovered. That Tosca Lee's religious miracles could not be rationalised.
On the other hand. It is a good book for Christians. I would recommend it to you if you are one. But if you are not, and you want to read a book that tells the story of Judas without the fantasy element. This is not the book you want.
And if you want to be challenged on the supernatural elements, the book you probably want is the bible.
If you want to read about miracles, you should probably just go to the source and read the real deal. Even being non religious as I am, I will admit, that apart from the writing being a lot better than this book, there is no better book to relate the story of Jesus and Judas than the bible itself. Not sure why anybody would want to rewrite a story from the bible and not re-purpose it to accommodate readers from all walks of life...but, there it is.
I gave it three stars. I had to be honest about what I was reading. The book is nicely written. Sure, it is not rocket science and there are no literary high wire acts here. It is not as well written as the quotes on the book say and that the Christian reviewers make it out to be. I do not mean it is poor writing, or naïve writing. No. It is good enough. It is just not clever or broadly skilful.
Up until a point I was enjoying the book. If the implausible had not shattered the serenity, this may have been a 4 star book for me.
Since I cannot blame the book for not being what I had expected of it, I had to rate it based on how the book was making me feel up until the point I threw it in.
And that feeling lands somewhere between 3 and 4 stars. Seeing as I did not finish it, I figure 3 is good enough.
January 18, 2013
Brave, passionate and fearless are three words that I would choose to describe both the author Tosca Lee and her new novel Iscariot, A Novel of Judas. I think it takes a true master and someone who is willing to take a major risk to write a novel like this. And take risks she did. But I think unequivocally the risk paid off as Iscariot is an amazing literary work that takes us on Judas’ journey with Jesus in a way that was so heartfelt and yes, heartbreaking, I mean, how can it not be? Personally I think it’s very tough to take a story where everyone knows the ending and the ending is not a good one, but still make it a compelling read. Tosca Lee does this so well and I really appreciated the journey and feel that everyone who reads this book will look at Judas a little differently.
Judas is portrayed as someone who was always searching- searching for a true messiah. And with much heartache and tragedy to show for this search, his story unravels in an intricately done way. He loses vastly important people to him, and his grief and guilt play a major role in shaping him as a man. His search for a messiah and search for love draw him to this person of Jesus. Along with Tosca’s portrayal of Judas, I loved how she wrote Jesus as well. His amazing love for his disciples and the people around him showed through beautifully, as well as the absolute desperation for why he came to us. I think the thing I most loved about this portrayal of Judas though, is the fact that he loved Jesus, but still even with that love, there was his constant battle between what he grew up knowing as the law versus what he saw before him in the person of Jesus.
Another aspect of this novel that I found utterly compelling was Judas’ “fall”- so different from how I have ever pictured it, I think that most of us have just left Judas as a 2 dimensional character- “he’s the bad guy who betrayed Jesus”, but Tosca brings him alive and we can see him and understand him and empathize with him and yes, even see ourselves in him. He, like so many of us, was a man deceived and with that deception came ultimate destruction.
Finally, I would like to urge you to read the author’s note at the end of the book- it is fascinating to read Tosca’s journey as she wrote this book. I loved the questions that she wrestled with to bring this character of Judas to life; especially with regards to grace- are there no limits? Truly, this last bit of the book puts a period at the end of the story, which is why I mention it- I always feel that if we get a further look into the heart of the author, with regards to their work, that it broadens our understanding of the novel as a whole. In the usual Tosca Lee style, she brings beautiful prose to this book, as well as an intense realness to the situations. I found it to be masterful, compelling storytelling and a story that I will remember for a long time.
I was given a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Judas is portrayed as someone who was always searching- searching for a true messiah. And with much heartache and tragedy to show for this search, his story unravels in an intricately done way. He loses vastly important people to him, and his grief and guilt play a major role in shaping him as a man. His search for a messiah and search for love draw him to this person of Jesus. Along with Tosca’s portrayal of Judas, I loved how she wrote Jesus as well. His amazing love for his disciples and the people around him showed through beautifully, as well as the absolute desperation for why he came to us. I think the thing I most loved about this portrayal of Judas though, is the fact that he loved Jesus, but still even with that love, there was his constant battle between what he grew up knowing as the law versus what he saw before him in the person of Jesus.
Another aspect of this novel that I found utterly compelling was Judas’ “fall”- so different from how I have ever pictured it, I think that most of us have just left Judas as a 2 dimensional character- “he’s the bad guy who betrayed Jesus”, but Tosca brings him alive and we can see him and understand him and empathize with him and yes, even see ourselves in him. He, like so many of us, was a man deceived and with that deception came ultimate destruction.
Finally, I would like to urge you to read the author’s note at the end of the book- it is fascinating to read Tosca’s journey as she wrote this book. I loved the questions that she wrestled with to bring this character of Judas to life; especially with regards to grace- are there no limits? Truly, this last bit of the book puts a period at the end of the story, which is why I mention it- I always feel that if we get a further look into the heart of the author, with regards to their work, that it broadens our understanding of the novel as a whole. In the usual Tosca Lee style, she brings beautiful prose to this book, as well as an intense realness to the situations. I found it to be masterful, compelling storytelling and a story that I will remember for a long time.
I was given a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
February 6, 2013
I approached this book not knowing what to expect, thinking to myself "Is it actually possible to be entertained by a story from the Bible that I've heard over and over?" The answer is a resounding yes!
Iscariot is one of those novels that satisfies on every level, offering the pleasure of a beautifully told story, combined with an entertaining plot and a character that is sure to shatter every preconceived notion you have ever had about Judas Iscariot. Tosca Lee writes with exquisite prose, with colorful, vivid descriptions that transport the reader deep into the heart of the story. I found myself living and breathing alongside Judas, soon experiencing a surprising heart of empathy as I met the Judas that Tosca Lee has constructed. But let me be clear that you aren't going to read anything here that shouts, "That's not what the Bible says!" Yes, this is fiction, and so the author did take some poetic license to flesh out who Judas may have been. But nothing she wrote rings false. Instead, with her usual careful research, Tosca Lee has unpacked the character of Judas and offered us what might have been, a truly plausible take on a person I've read about in the Bible over and over, but never considered as deeply as I have while reading this book. I found myself holding my breath as I raced through the pages, wishing for a different ending despite knowing how things must end. And yet the author did an amazing job at creating a conclusion that still surprised me, and one that left me deep in thought as I closed these pages. My faith has been stirred, and I know yours will be too as you read through this story.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough, and award it a full 5 out of 5 stars.
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher, Howard Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, for the purposes of this unbiased review.
Iscariot is one of those novels that satisfies on every level, offering the pleasure of a beautifully told story, combined with an entertaining plot and a character that is sure to shatter every preconceived notion you have ever had about Judas Iscariot. Tosca Lee writes with exquisite prose, with colorful, vivid descriptions that transport the reader deep into the heart of the story. I found myself living and breathing alongside Judas, soon experiencing a surprising heart of empathy as I met the Judas that Tosca Lee has constructed. But let me be clear that you aren't going to read anything here that shouts, "That's not what the Bible says!" Yes, this is fiction, and so the author did take some poetic license to flesh out who Judas may have been. But nothing she wrote rings false. Instead, with her usual careful research, Tosca Lee has unpacked the character of Judas and offered us what might have been, a truly plausible take on a person I've read about in the Bible over and over, but never considered as deeply as I have while reading this book. I found myself holding my breath as I raced through the pages, wishing for a different ending despite knowing how things must end. And yet the author did an amazing job at creating a conclusion that still surprised me, and one that left me deep in thought as I closed these pages. My faith has been stirred, and I know yours will be too as you read through this story.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough, and award it a full 5 out of 5 stars.
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher, Howard Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, for the purposes of this unbiased review.
March 25, 2019
How familiar are you with the infamous Judas Iscarot? In the bible, he is known to be one of 12 apostles and betrayer who sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. Ultimately, he hanged on a tree.
Tosca Lee addresses the ultimate question of "why." What led Judas to betray Jesus? Was it greed that led to his decision?
Judas is a zealous Jew living in Israel who followed "Messiahs" and personally witnessed the Romans persecute them. He is afflicted under Roman rule, which resulted in losing his wife and unborn son. Just like any typical Jew seeking deliverance from the Roman rule, he was seeking for answers from the law and discovered Jesus performing a miracle that defies his very eyes. Jesus touches and heals a leper, which can be found in Matthew chapter 8.
Since then, he has been following Jesus and learning his ways of love to the community. He loves following Jesus but feels conflicted in his heart. Why is Jesus not preparing his kingdom against the Roman? Why is he not following the Torah? Why is he mingling with the sinners?
Then, there is one event that leads Judas to betray Jesus. Read the book to find out.
---> I found this book to be thought provoking and deep. The stories you find in Matthew are described more in depth in this book. I liked how the narrator brought life to the narrative!
Tosca Lee addresses the ultimate question of "why." What led Judas to betray Jesus? Was it greed that led to his decision?
Judas is a zealous Jew living in Israel who followed "Messiahs" and personally witnessed the Romans persecute them. He is afflicted under Roman rule, which resulted in losing his wife and unborn son. Just like any typical Jew seeking deliverance from the Roman rule, he was seeking for answers from the law and discovered Jesus performing a miracle that defies his very eyes. Jesus touches and heals a leper, which can be found in Matthew chapter 8.
Since then, he has been following Jesus and learning his ways of love to the community. He loves following Jesus but feels conflicted in his heart. Why is Jesus not preparing his kingdom against the Roman? Why is he not following the Torah? Why is he mingling with the sinners?
Then, there is one event that leads Judas to betray Jesus. Read the book to find out.
---> I found this book to be thought provoking and deep. The stories you find in Matthew are described more in depth in this book. I liked how the narrator brought life to the narrative!
August 23, 2014
A week or so after starting this book, I realized I was reading it slowly. Then I had to analyze why I was reading it that way.
Was it boring? No. Was it poorly written? No. Did the subject not interest me? No again.
Then I figured it out. I was reading slowly for three interconnected reasons:
1) Because there was a depth and earnestness to it that I probably hadn’t run into since I read Tosca’s “Havah” a few years back. The situations are plausible, and the characters refreshingly real.
2) Because it was troubling and convicting. It is difficult to think that someone as reviled as Judas wasn’t really that different from everyone else. That, given the right circumstances and surroundings, any of us might find ourselves betraying someone we love.
3) Because I was savoring it! This is something that only happens to me on rare occasions. There are some books I love and blast through, and others (a smaller subset) that I love and savor, hoping to delay the end as long as possible. Iscariot was the later for me.
I’ve read three of Tosca’s books so far and I think this is probably the best. Very well done and hits all the right notes. I highly recommend it!
Was it boring? No. Was it poorly written? No. Did the subject not interest me? No again.
Then I figured it out. I was reading slowly for three interconnected reasons:
1) Because there was a depth and earnestness to it that I probably hadn’t run into since I read Tosca’s “Havah” a few years back. The situations are plausible, and the characters refreshingly real.
2) Because it was troubling and convicting. It is difficult to think that someone as reviled as Judas wasn’t really that different from everyone else. That, given the right circumstances and surroundings, any of us might find ourselves betraying someone we love.
3) Because I was savoring it! This is something that only happens to me on rare occasions. There are some books I love and blast through, and others (a smaller subset) that I love and savor, hoping to delay the end as long as possible. Iscariot was the later for me.
I’ve read three of Tosca’s books so far and I think this is probably the best. Very well done and hits all the right notes. I highly recommend it!
February 3, 2025
I want to start off by saying that from the very beginning this story captivated me.
If you want to know what this is about, just imagine reading about Judas’ early life (think the book of Job). Then, reading the Gospels from Judas’ point of view.
The point that Tosca Lee is making here is that maybe we are more like Judas than we think. She also reminds us that Jesus was a compassionate man that came not only “to save us from the Romans but to save us from ourselves.”
A 4-star rating seems fitting to account for my enjoyment of this book, but I would be remiss to not mention that I don’t know that this would be a great read for people who are not deeply rooted in Christ.
Tosca seems to struggle with a lot of questions, and through the way she wrote this book I found myself wrestling with some confusion as well. Friend, God is not the author of confusion, and this book is a work of fiction. So, while the sentiment is nice, and the empath in me enjoyed it. I am constantly reminded that the Bible is the infallible word of God. He gave us everything we need to know in scripture. It’s healthy to have questions, but let us not get lost in them. 🫶
If you want to know what this is about, just imagine reading about Judas’ early life (think the book of Job). Then, reading the Gospels from Judas’ point of view.
The point that Tosca Lee is making here is that maybe we are more like Judas than we think. She also reminds us that Jesus was a compassionate man that came not only “to save us from the Romans but to save us from ourselves.”
A 4-star rating seems fitting to account for my enjoyment of this book, but I would be remiss to not mention that I don’t know that this would be a great read for people who are not deeply rooted in Christ.
Tosca seems to struggle with a lot of questions, and through the way she wrote this book I found myself wrestling with some confusion as well. Friend, God is not the author of confusion, and this book is a work of fiction. So, while the sentiment is nice, and the empath in me enjoyed it. I am constantly reminded that the Bible is the infallible word of God. He gave us everything we need to know in scripture. It’s healthy to have questions, but let us not get lost in them. 🫶
December 31, 2023
I am DNF the book. I hate to say this but the book was so boring. I usually go thru a audiobook in 2-3 days and I had have this book for over a week and not looking forward to finish it. I found the book rather dry and not entertaining at all. I know its is about Judus but the story is made up and we don't know if this really did happen to him. Was he a good person confused by his upbringing or was just a thoughtless man? If you are looking for a dry read then this is for you.
August 11, 2023
#BookReviewFriday
#2023readingchallenge
#32biblicalfiction
Book Review ⭐️
# 32 Biblical Fiction
Book: Iscariot
Author: Tosca Lee
Narrator: Jason Culp
Stand by for my longest review yet. Apologies in advance for my tone, I tried not to be negative, but I have so much to say about this book and it's not positive.
As a rule, I don’t give below three stars, but I had no choice, if there was ever a 1 star, this book is it. Not so long ago, I didn’t read Biblical Fiction at all. I didn’t read it because I knew fictional characters could never live up to my Bible heroes, but then I read a few that were actually engaging, entertaining and stuck closely to the Bible, so I thought hey, this isn’t so bad. Then I read this book and was harshly reminded of how Biblical fiction can go wrong. I usually try to stay as positive as possible, even if I didn’t enjoy a book but this was a task in itself.
I wanted to love this book. I really did. I had heard that Tosca Lee was a legend in this genre and I absolutely loved the idea of Judas being humanized. The tag line for this book was so catchy, “We are all Judas”. The tag line really got me thinking. There was a time that Judas loved Jesus, and what was it like to be Judas? The premise of the book fascinated me and I couldn’t wait to dive in. The beginning started off pretty good. I got to see Judas as a child, and the background story was engaging and believable, it was a good set up for Judas’ character, but that is really where my praise for the book ends. I found parts of this book so egregious, that I literally compiled a top ten list of what I didn’t like. List below.
10) Potty talk. I don’t mind potty talk when it is necessary, but the amount of times I had to hear about someone’s bowels emptying or them relieving themselves was unnecessary and I don’t even understand why.
9) I was under the impression I would get to see Judas’ real time reaction to the miracles Jesus performed, but what I got was literally a retelling of what we know he did in the Bible with the same reaction from Judas. I felt like it was just a bad Bible translation.
8)I listened to the book, so maybe the author couldn’t control this one, but Jesus sounded like a cross between a homosexual male and a child. I could not understand the complete unmanly pitch used to speak for my Lord and Savior, it just felt wrong.
7) Judas points out continuously that Jesus speaks in parables and that is why people couldn’t understand him. This is completely false. Every Rabbi of the era taught in parables so pointing this out as if it was so far off the scale was just an inaccuracy that bugged me and took away from the legitimacy of the story.
6) The book made Jesus appear to be a madman. I took SERIOUS issue with this. Did people surrounding him think he was radical. Yes. Did some not understand his teaching. Yes. But to act as if everyone around him thought he was off his rocker and to actually make him appear to be off his rocker was just the height of disrespect. I don’t understand this one at all from a Christian writer.
5) The other disciples were disloyal complainers. We may not know a lot about Judas other than he was a betrayer, but we actually know quite a bit about Simon Peter. To make him and the other disciples appear to question every decision Jesus made had me so angry. These are the martyrs that died for the early church, but here, they are just whiny unbelievers that have nothing better to do than follow a mad man it made ZERO sense.
4) The Judas we know from the Bible is unrecognizable here. He is the most decent, the most devoted, the smartest, the kindest the noblest and I just wanted to see what the man known as the ultimate betrayer would be like as a human, not as Jesus himself! Because Judas was more like the Jesus we know than the Judas we know in this book.
3) Judas is the only person in the book with common sense and knowledge of the law, only he doesn’t know the law, because it is constantly misconstrued and taken out of context from his view. I don’t feel like this was intentional, and I feel like the author knew a lot about the time, so I don’t understand this inaccuracy at all.
2) Judas betrayed Jesus out of love. I believe Judas did love Jesus. I absolutely do. However, there are things we know about Judas that tell us about his character even before his ultimate betrayal. Those things are glossed over and explained away. The money Judas stole from their treasury, yeah, he needed that money to purify himself don’t you know so it was for a good cause! When he told Mary not to waste that expensive perfume on Jesus, yeah he never says that here and I don’t know why because all these things helped show us his character. I expected to see Judas as conflicted, one-minute loving Jesus but being weak of character, unable to stomach him the next. Instead I got a Judas that is the only disciple who truly loved Jesus. A Judas whose failings are explained away and who loves Jesus so much he just wants to protect him. The betrayal itself is ultimately shown as a selfless act to protect Jesus.
1) The most egregious and unforgivable part of this book was the direct contradiction of scripture. I do not abide that in any CF that I read. A book can’t be CF if it directly contradicts the Bible in my opinion. We know VERY clearly from the Bible that Satan entered Judas during the time of the betrayal. We all have to fight Satan daily, so this always made sense to me so for her to change the complete reason for the betrayal, add some contrived story of he thought he was protecting Jesus etc, just baffled and annoyed me and it took me COMPLETELY out of the story and ruined it for me.
Ms. Lee is a talented writer, I wanted to love this book, it started off well. I HATE that I had to leave a review this harsh, but the mishandling of this book just has me so sad.
https://m.facebook.com/groups/scriptl...
#2023readingchallenge
#32biblicalfiction
Book Review ⭐️
# 32 Biblical Fiction
Book: Iscariot
Author: Tosca Lee
Narrator: Jason Culp
Stand by for my longest review yet. Apologies in advance for my tone, I tried not to be negative, but I have so much to say about this book and it's not positive.
As a rule, I don’t give below three stars, but I had no choice, if there was ever a 1 star, this book is it. Not so long ago, I didn’t read Biblical Fiction at all. I didn’t read it because I knew fictional characters could never live up to my Bible heroes, but then I read a few that were actually engaging, entertaining and stuck closely to the Bible, so I thought hey, this isn’t so bad. Then I read this book and was harshly reminded of how Biblical fiction can go wrong. I usually try to stay as positive as possible, even if I didn’t enjoy a book but this was a task in itself.
I wanted to love this book. I really did. I had heard that Tosca Lee was a legend in this genre and I absolutely loved the idea of Judas being humanized. The tag line for this book was so catchy, “We are all Judas”. The tag line really got me thinking. There was a time that Judas loved Jesus, and what was it like to be Judas? The premise of the book fascinated me and I couldn’t wait to dive in. The beginning started off pretty good. I got to see Judas as a child, and the background story was engaging and believable, it was a good set up for Judas’ character, but that is really where my praise for the book ends. I found parts of this book so egregious, that I literally compiled a top ten list of what I didn’t like. List below.
10) Potty talk. I don’t mind potty talk when it is necessary, but the amount of times I had to hear about someone’s bowels emptying or them relieving themselves was unnecessary and I don’t even understand why.
9) I was under the impression I would get to see Judas’ real time reaction to the miracles Jesus performed, but what I got was literally a retelling of what we know he did in the Bible with the same reaction from Judas. I felt like it was just a bad Bible translation.
8)I listened to the book, so maybe the author couldn’t control this one, but Jesus sounded like a cross between a homosexual male and a child. I could not understand the complete unmanly pitch used to speak for my Lord and Savior, it just felt wrong.
7) Judas points out continuously that Jesus speaks in parables and that is why people couldn’t understand him. This is completely false. Every Rabbi of the era taught in parables so pointing this out as if it was so far off the scale was just an inaccuracy that bugged me and took away from the legitimacy of the story.
6) The book made Jesus appear to be a madman. I took SERIOUS issue with this. Did people surrounding him think he was radical. Yes. Did some not understand his teaching. Yes. But to act as if everyone around him thought he was off his rocker and to actually make him appear to be off his rocker was just the height of disrespect. I don’t understand this one at all from a Christian writer.
5) The other disciples were disloyal complainers. We may not know a lot about Judas other than he was a betrayer, but we actually know quite a bit about Simon Peter. To make him and the other disciples appear to question every decision Jesus made had me so angry. These are the martyrs that died for the early church, but here, they are just whiny unbelievers that have nothing better to do than follow a mad man it made ZERO sense.
4) The Judas we know from the Bible is unrecognizable here. He is the most decent, the most devoted, the smartest, the kindest the noblest and I just wanted to see what the man known as the ultimate betrayer would be like as a human, not as Jesus himself! Because Judas was more like the Jesus we know than the Judas we know in this book.
3) Judas is the only person in the book with common sense and knowledge of the law, only he doesn’t know the law, because it is constantly misconstrued and taken out of context from his view. I don’t feel like this was intentional, and I feel like the author knew a lot about the time, so I don’t understand this inaccuracy at all.
2) Judas betrayed Jesus out of love. I believe Judas did love Jesus. I absolutely do. However, there are things we know about Judas that tell us about his character even before his ultimate betrayal. Those things are glossed over and explained away. The money Judas stole from their treasury, yeah, he needed that money to purify himself don’t you know so it was for a good cause! When he told Mary not to waste that expensive perfume on Jesus, yeah he never says that here and I don’t know why because all these things helped show us his character. I expected to see Judas as conflicted, one-minute loving Jesus but being weak of character, unable to stomach him the next. Instead I got a Judas that is the only disciple who truly loved Jesus. A Judas whose failings are explained away and who loves Jesus so much he just wants to protect him. The betrayal itself is ultimately shown as a selfless act to protect Jesus.
1) The most egregious and unforgivable part of this book was the direct contradiction of scripture. I do not abide that in any CF that I read. A book can’t be CF if it directly contradicts the Bible in my opinion. We know VERY clearly from the Bible that Satan entered Judas during the time of the betrayal. We all have to fight Satan daily, so this always made sense to me so for her to change the complete reason for the betrayal, add some contrived story of he thought he was protecting Jesus etc, just baffled and annoyed me and it took me COMPLETELY out of the story and ruined it for me.
Ms. Lee is a talented writer, I wanted to love this book, it started off well. I HATE that I had to leave a review this harsh, but the mishandling of this book just has me so sad.
https://m.facebook.com/groups/scriptl...
April 15, 2017
Wow. What a beautiful imagination of Judas' life and betrayal. And how I loved the portrayal of Jesus's' love. It blew me away. It was such an appropriate read for this Easter weekend.
December 8, 2014
Iscariot is a provocative, intimate portrayal of the life of Judas Iscariot & his relationship with Jesus.
Judas is labeled as a thief and betrayer, and he is both of those things. But every person is more than what their actions make them, and before Judas made the decision to betray Jesus, he was called His friend. This friendship between the two of them and between Judas and the rest of the disciples was compelling. I applaud Tosca Lee for making a mysterious, hated figure into a real person that provokes empathy with readers, weaving a plausible tale of his life.
As for Jesus, how often do we hear that His words and actions were radical and yet not fully grasp just how abnormal and blasphemous they appeared to the Pharisees & others who were only concerned with the Law and those looking for a war-making Messiah that would overthrow Rome. I kept thinking, I know this, I know this, why do I feel as if I'm hearing it for the first time?
Was there ever any other choice for Judas as the one created to bring about the death, and therefore Resurrection, of Jesus? I certainly don't know the answer and am by no means justifying his actions, but felt this question and more turn over and over in my heart and mind. Ultimately, Tosca lays out the idea that being a "Judas" is not beyond any one of us. Will I base how "clean" I am on being good or will I realize that it is never in my power to be so? Judas realizes this, but only much too late. He doesn't completely embrace the teachings of Jesus, but relies on keeping the Law and the waters of the temple and the leaders there to be clean. My heart split in two with Judas's words, as he realized too late - "He didn't come to save us from Rome. He came to save us from ourselves." (paraphrasing as I don't have the book in front of me)
I do wish there had been more interaction between Jesus, Judas and his disciples on a human level, but overall that is just a minor niggle that I had.
I loved the author's note at the end - if you have a tendency of skipping those, please read this one! It really brings everything full circle.
Judas is labeled as a thief and betrayer, and he is both of those things. But every person is more than what their actions make them, and before Judas made the decision to betray Jesus, he was called His friend. This friendship between the two of them and between Judas and the rest of the disciples was compelling. I applaud Tosca Lee for making a mysterious, hated figure into a real person that provokes empathy with readers, weaving a plausible tale of his life.
As for Jesus, how often do we hear that His words and actions were radical and yet not fully grasp just how abnormal and blasphemous they appeared to the Pharisees & others who were only concerned with the Law and those looking for a war-making Messiah that would overthrow Rome. I kept thinking, I know this, I know this, why do I feel as if I'm hearing it for the first time?
Was there ever any other choice for Judas as the one created to bring about the death, and therefore Resurrection, of Jesus? I certainly don't know the answer and am by no means justifying his actions, but felt this question and more turn over and over in my heart and mind. Ultimately, Tosca lays out the idea that being a "Judas" is not beyond any one of us. Will I base how "clean" I am on being good or will I realize that it is never in my power to be so? Judas realizes this, but only much too late. He doesn't completely embrace the teachings of Jesus, but relies on keeping the Law and the waters of the temple and the leaders there to be clean. My heart split in two with Judas's words, as he realized too late - "He didn't come to save us from Rome. He came to save us from ourselves." (paraphrasing as I don't have the book in front of me)
I do wish there had been more interaction between Jesus, Judas and his disciples on a human level, but overall that is just a minor niggle that I had.
I loved the author's note at the end - if you have a tendency of skipping those, please read this one! It really brings everything full circle.
March 25, 2015
Being someone that isn’t very religious, I find I am still drawn to the stories from the Bible. That being said, I typically prefer my stories to be from the Old Testament. However, this story of Judas – the perpetual antagonist in any New Testament story of Jesus gets a new treatment by Tosca Lee and that drew me into this novel.
Iscariot follows Judas from his youth to his death and fills in many of the gaps in his life left by the Bible. We learn about what his life might have been like leading up to meeting Jesus and get some insight into why he might have made some of the choices he did throughout his life. Lee’s Judas isn’t a perfect character – he is still flawed but you get into his mind and soul and see how he might have viewed the events that were transpiring around him. While reading the novel I found myself discussing it with my fiancé who knows more of the Biblical stories than I do, and it appears that Lee did follow many of the events of the Bible while enhancing the background.
One of the aspects that I really appreciated about this book was the fact that the author was able to bring the belief of Jesus as the savior into a real world setting. For me, the events of the Bible always seem sort of suspended above reality and I felt very connected with the world that Lee created and could more easily believe all of the drama that ensued. The story really sucked me in and there was something interesting and engaging at every turn.
I think that this is a book that any historical or Biblical fiction fan would enjoy. There is enough consistency with the Biblical stories but also enough fiction to create an interesting yarn. The ending certainly surprised me, but that was because I didn’t know the Biblical story.
The narration for this book was excellent. I enjoyed the voice of the narrator and it was easy to listen to and not at all dry or monotonous. I could actually believe that he was voicing Judas.
This review was previously posted @ The Maiden's Court. Was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Iscariot follows Judas from his youth to his death and fills in many of the gaps in his life left by the Bible. We learn about what his life might have been like leading up to meeting Jesus and get some insight into why he might have made some of the choices he did throughout his life. Lee’s Judas isn’t a perfect character – he is still flawed but you get into his mind and soul and see how he might have viewed the events that were transpiring around him. While reading the novel I found myself discussing it with my fiancé who knows more of the Biblical stories than I do, and it appears that Lee did follow many of the events of the Bible while enhancing the background.
One of the aspects that I really appreciated about this book was the fact that the author was able to bring the belief of Jesus as the savior into a real world setting. For me, the events of the Bible always seem sort of suspended above reality and I felt very connected with the world that Lee created and could more easily believe all of the drama that ensued. The story really sucked me in and there was something interesting and engaging at every turn.
I think that this is a book that any historical or Biblical fiction fan would enjoy. There is enough consistency with the Biblical stories but also enough fiction to create an interesting yarn. The ending certainly surprised me, but that was because I didn’t know the Biblical story.
The narration for this book was excellent. I enjoyed the voice of the narrator and it was easy to listen to and not at all dry or monotonous. I could actually believe that he was voicing Judas.
This review was previously posted @ The Maiden's Court. Was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
November 25, 2013
Tosca Lee tackles the daunting, and perhaps controversial, task of creating a backstory for the most infamous disciple, Judas Iscariot. The reader can expect a great deal of history and backstory, presumably fictitious, which paints an interesting story, in the early chapters. As the story unfolds, Judas matures and suffers much at the hands of the Roman occupiers. Lee does an excellent job in showing the pre-Jesus years of Judas’ life and examines many of the nuances of Jesus’ ministry; including how even the disciples were unclear about what was going on. Lee does an admirable job in personalising all the disciples, not just Judas, and the length to which they sacrificed their lives and safety to follow this unknown man. As the crowds grow, so does the doubt. With the eventually inner turmoil suffered by Judas, he sells out to the High Priests, more to save himself than to underscore his true beliefs.
Lee is a masterful storyteller and historian. Biblical fiction can be tricky, as many feel they ‘know it all’ and any flirtatious attempt to fictionalise those times can leave the writer’s inbox full of hateful diatribes. She keeps things real by creating a back story, keeping it true to the times, yet also ensuring that the story moves along at a reasonable pace. Much doubt and inner exploration does occur with Judas and Lee captures this at numerous times throughout the novel. The deceit for which Judas is so well known does not occur one day, but was a long and complex journey, which Lee synthesises with ease in the ongoing struggle that Judas has and the agent provocateur role he played with a secret group called the Sons. A great book for any reader who enjoys speculation on the fundamental story of Christianity, without pushing things into the realm of blasphemy.
Kudos Madam Lee on this wonderful piece of literature. Highly entertaining, while also deeply thought provoking.
Lee is a masterful storyteller and historian. Biblical fiction can be tricky, as many feel they ‘know it all’ and any flirtatious attempt to fictionalise those times can leave the writer’s inbox full of hateful diatribes. She keeps things real by creating a back story, keeping it true to the times, yet also ensuring that the story moves along at a reasonable pace. Much doubt and inner exploration does occur with Judas and Lee captures this at numerous times throughout the novel. The deceit for which Judas is so well known does not occur one day, but was a long and complex journey, which Lee synthesises with ease in the ongoing struggle that Judas has and the agent provocateur role he played with a secret group called the Sons. A great book for any reader who enjoys speculation on the fundamental story of Christianity, without pushing things into the realm of blasphemy.
Kudos Madam Lee on this wonderful piece of literature. Highly entertaining, while also deeply thought provoking.
February 8, 2013
The name Judas has become synonymous with “traitor” as a result of one of the most heinous acts of betrayal ever—Judas Iscariot selling Jesus to the Jewish authorities for thirty pieces of silver. History has been quick to condemn Judas who, through his own belated sense of guilt, condemned himself and committed suicide. What horrible twistings existed in his mind to make him commit such despicable acts?
That is exactly the question author Lee attempts to answer in this engrossing study of Jesus’ disciple turned traitor. No stranger to the exploration of maligned characters, Lee delves deeply into the mind of Judas and finds there a man passionate both about liberty for the Jewish people and his love for Jesus. In this novel Judas is depicted as a man that has seen his loved ones destroyed by the atrocities of the Romans against the Jews, a man whose desire for vengeance is in opposition to everything his master, Jesus, teaches. How can he reconcile these two warring factions of his psyche?
Other than the scant accounts of him in the Bible, there is nothing known of Judas, but the author’s extensive research into ancient Israel results in an intriguing and completely plausible portrait of the man. Other characters come forth in a lively manner that shakes off the dust of hagiography. As well, Judas’ perspective of Jesus forms a new way of seeing and comprehending the most famous religious figure of all time.
This is an exciting and colorful novel that retells an ages-old story in a fresh, new way. It is well-worth the read.
That is exactly the question author Lee attempts to answer in this engrossing study of Jesus’ disciple turned traitor. No stranger to the exploration of maligned characters, Lee delves deeply into the mind of Judas and finds there a man passionate both about liberty for the Jewish people and his love for Jesus. In this novel Judas is depicted as a man that has seen his loved ones destroyed by the atrocities of the Romans against the Jews, a man whose desire for vengeance is in opposition to everything his master, Jesus, teaches. How can he reconcile these two warring factions of his psyche?
Other than the scant accounts of him in the Bible, there is nothing known of Judas, but the author’s extensive research into ancient Israel results in an intriguing and completely plausible portrait of the man. Other characters come forth in a lively manner that shakes off the dust of hagiography. As well, Judas’ perspective of Jesus forms a new way of seeing and comprehending the most famous religious figure of all time.
This is an exciting and colorful novel that retells an ages-old story in a fresh, new way. It is well-worth the read.
February 8, 2013
This book is amazing. What a writer and what a book. It's taken me a while to read it because I can only read a few chapters of it at a time. In most books, that's a bad thing, but not this one. I can only read a bit at a time because this book breaks my heart every time I read it.
Suppose -- just suppose mind you -- that Judas Iscariot wasn't the wolf in sheep's clothing that we always thought he was. Suppose he was someone who loved Jesus as much as any of us or perhaps even more? What if his story didn't end in betrayal and suicide?
And yet it does end that way (no spoiler there, she starts the novel with his death). That's what makes this story so heartbreaking. So how does she make Judas a sympathetic character and yet keep the ending believable? Because Tosca Lee is an amazing storyteller. Ah. Maz. Zing! For this is not only Judas' story, it's a story of Jesus as well.
If you want to explore how much you love Christ, read this book. If you think you bear no resemblance at all to Judas Iscariot, read this book. It will open your eyes and yes, probably break your heart.
Thanks to The DeMoss Group for providing a copy for me to review.
Suppose -- just suppose mind you -- that Judas Iscariot wasn't the wolf in sheep's clothing that we always thought he was. Suppose he was someone who loved Jesus as much as any of us or perhaps even more? What if his story didn't end in betrayal and suicide?
And yet it does end that way (no spoiler there, she starts the novel with his death). That's what makes this story so heartbreaking. So how does she make Judas a sympathetic character and yet keep the ending believable? Because Tosca Lee is an amazing storyteller. Ah. Maz. Zing! For this is not only Judas' story, it's a story of Jesus as well.
If you want to explore how much you love Christ, read this book. If you think you bear no resemblance at all to Judas Iscariot, read this book. It will open your eyes and yes, probably break your heart.
Thanks to The DeMoss Group for providing a copy for me to review.
February 27, 2023
Lent is an interesting time to read Iscariot.
In this novel, readers get the life of Judas and what may have motivated him to take the actions he did. Definitely caused me to think about Judas in a new light.
Walking with Jesus in the pages was refreshing.
My gratitude to the author for a complimentary copy of the novel. I was not required to post a review. All opinions expressed are my own.
In this novel, readers get the life of Judas and what may have motivated him to take the actions he did. Definitely caused me to think about Judas in a new light.
Walking with Jesus in the pages was refreshing.
My gratitude to the author for a complimentary copy of the novel. I was not required to post a review. All opinions expressed are my own.
December 13, 2013
Overall, very well done and I should have given an extra star just for the ambition to write such a challenging novel, but I've been reading Patrick O'Brian's books for the last several months and it's hard to give an historical novel high marks with a baseline like O'Brian for comparison. Still, Lee is a good writer, she did actually say the book was supposed to be focused on the relationship of Jesus and Judas and she does re-create a strongly imagined, tangible world in which the story of the few years of Jesus' ministry is seen and narrated from Judas Iscariot's point of view. I don't know as much about the era and customs of the time as I would like and more information on that point would have been appreciated, as well as a greater shade of depth for the apostles perhaps, but I suppose the author didn't want to go too far recreating such a debated subject lest she fall into a partisan category. I'd recommend this book but I doubt I'll read it more than once.
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